Western Digital Caviar SE16 |
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The WD4000KD hard disk holds very similar specifications as the Hitachi and Seagate 400GB models. The WD drive holds 16MB cache, 7200 RPM, Serial ATA (150MB/s), four 100GB platters, 8.9ms read seek time. This drive does not come with Native Command Queuing, however this is not necessarily a bad thing. While NCQ is a welcomed technology it hasn't yet showed significant improvements in performance with it enabled.
One thing you are sure to notice about this drive is its physical beauty. With its slick flat black look all around, it is unlike any drive we have tested to date here at Techwarelabs. It could be displayed as is through a case window and look great.
One of the items included in the small package with the WD4000KD is an interesting cable what Western Digital calls an SATA cable with SecureConnect. The SecureConnect was designed for increased strength on the drive connection in which Western Digital says helps reduce returns relating to broken SATA connections. A reasonable and good idea, however when hooking up the hard drive in this manner you must use a legacy 4-pin power connector to power the hard drive. The included cable does not provide power to the hard drive even though it may look that way. Of course, you may hook up the drive with a traditional Serial ATA cable and Serial ATA power cable if you wish.
Another item included with the package is Western Digital's Data Lifeguard Tools version 11.2. WD has taken extra steps to ensure your hard drive stays as stable as possible, and their Data Lifeguard Tools helps with just that. It is made to help assist in installing the hard drive, managing, and running diagnostics on the drive. It can actually run in the background of your computer and try and detect any faults with your hard drive and work on them when your system is idle.
Lastly, included is a well written and easy to follow quick installation guide. For you novices out there you shouldn't have any problems following the included instructions to install this drive and get it working as it should.
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